Syllabus: GS-II, Subject: Governance, Topic: important aspects of governance, Issue: Multidimensional and localized index at district level
Context: Recently Maharashtra has created a District development index
Need for Multidimensional and localized index at district level:
- Large average population of districts (86 million people larger than UAE and Singapore population)
- Develop grass root insight by analyzing socio-economic indicators
- Highlight the significant disparities in the income concentration across districts,
- Help in establishing varied measures for different localities and regions, tailored to their culture, urbanization, development and demography.
- Brings Transparency and ensure accountability of stakeholders.
- Helps in tracking and supporting the contemporary socio-economic and infrastructure development at the district level
Existing initiative in this direction
- Bottom-up policies are founded on three key pillars — data collection, best governance practices and incentivized collaboration between different departments.
- Aspirational Districts Programme – As per NITI AAYOG transformed the lives of about 25 crore people in 112 districts with visible outcomes
- Schemes such as the One District One Product (ODOP) is increasing district level productivity.
District level data can be used to created district level industrial cluster. This will catalyze district-level productivity and value-creation.
+1 Advantage:
| Data on progress of aspirational district program:
· The percentage of pregnant women registered for ante-natal care within the first trimester rose from 68 per cent in 2018 to 89 per cent in 2023. · The percentage of underweight children below the age of six years has considerably declined. One District One Product (ODOP) · Since its launch in 2020, the programme has seen the development and promotion of 1,000-plus unique products, across 767 districts, encompassing sectors such as textiles, agriculture, food processing and handicrafts. |
